The supply chain of bathtub gin and bootlegging

Alcohol production might have been illegal during Prohibition, but its supply chain was not

Prohibition might have made the production and sale of alcohol in the United States illegal, but that doesn’t mean Americans put down the bottle. The supply chain for alcoholic beverages flourished during the ban but in a completely different way.

Join Deputy Editor Brielle Jaekel and fellow FreightWavesTV host Mary O’Connell on this week’s episode of Tracks Through Time as they go back in time to Prohibition and see what it was like to make alcohol with regular household ingredients.

FreightWaves Classics articles look at various aspects of the transportation industry’s history. Click here to subscribe to our newsletter!

Have a topic you want me to cover? Email me at bjaekel@www.freightwaves.com or follow me on Twitter.

Upcoming FreightWaves Events
Fraud & Security

Freight Fraud Symposium

Double brokering. AI deepfakes. Identity theft. Freight fraud is an existential threat to the industry. Get ahead of it.

May 20, 2026
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame • Cleveland, OH
Register Now
AI & Technology

Supply Chain AI Symposium

Past the hype. Join operators, founders, and enterprise leaders figuring out how to deploy AI in supply chain.

July 15, 2026
The Old Post Office • Chicago, IL
Register Now
Rail & Policy

Future of Rail Symposium

Reshoring is rewriting freight demand. Join shippers, rail executives, and government officials to shape the next decade.

July 28, 2026
The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN
Register Now
Fraud & Security Freight Fraud Symposium May 20 • Cleveland, OH

Double brokering. AI deepfakes. Identity theft. Freight fraud is an existential threat to the industry. Get ahead of it.

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame • Cleveland, OH Register Now
AI & Technology Supply Chain AI Symposium Jul 15 • Chicago, IL

Past the hype. Join operators, founders, and enterprise leaders figuring out how to deploy AI in supply chain.

The Old Post Office • Chicago, IL Register Now
Rail & Policy Future of Rail Symposium Jul 28 • Chattanooga, TN

Reshoring is rewriting freight demand. Join shippers, rail executives, and government officials to shape the next decade.

The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN Register Now

Brielle Jaekel

Experienced journalist with roles including lead, deputy editor, managing editor, associate editor, staff reporter, staff writer, and editorial assistant.